Watch: Mohammed Shami sweats it out in the gym ahead of England series
One of the few silver linings of India's disappointing World Test Championship (WTC) final, Mohammed Shami is already back at his high-intensity training. The 30-year-old pacer posted a couple of clips of his workout sessions on Instagram on Saturday.
Mohammed Shami can be seen following a shoulder-strengthening exercise with weights in the first video, while the second clip is a combination of many different routines accompanied by some peppy music.
You can watch the videos here:
While India's top-ranked Test bowler Jasrpit Bumrah and most experienced pacer Ishant Sharma struggled for consistency in the WTC final, Shami singlehandedly posed problems for the Kiwi batsmen with his nagging lines and lengths.
He was the highest wicket-taker in the first innings with a spell of 4-76 under pressure. In the second essay, he derived innumerable false shots from the opposition and bowled with a better economy than any other pacer, albeit without any wickets to show.
Mohammed Shami will look to improve on his numbers in England
Now with just over a month to go in the first Test of the India-England series, all eyes will again be on the Indian pace battery.
The last time India played Joe Root's team on an away tour, Mohammed Shami picked up 16 wickets from 5 Tests at an uppish average of 38.88. Overall in his career, the right-arm pacer has given away 43.80 runs for every wicket in England - his worst showing in any country.
One of the differences between India and New Zealand pacers in the WTC final was in their bowling lengths. While the Kiwi group - led by Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee - constantly invited Indian batsmen to drive and beat them in swing, Indian bowlers depended more on Australian-style hit-the-deck lengths and seam movement.
Although Mohammed Shami has earned most of his wickets through his unmatched adeptness with the upright seam, he will look to improve on his lengths a bit more in the forthcoming series. The first Test will begin on August 4 at Nottingham's Trent Bridge.